Transverse foot lift



April 12, 1938:. J. TRICK ET AL 2,114,089

TRANSVERSE FOOT LIFT Filed July 6, 1937 NV E N T O R John Trz'c'k Walzer. B Trick- ATTORN EY Patented Apr. 12, 1938 UNITED STATES TRANSVERSE FOOT LIFT John Trick and Walter Birmingham Trick, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Application July 6, 1937, Serial No. 152,206

In Canada July 24, 1936 4 Claims. (C'l. 36--71) This invention relates to a transverse foot lift or support adapted to be built in shoes of any type.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a shoe having a transverse foot lift which may be adjusted to feet of all types.

Another object is the provision of an adjustable transverse foot lift firmly mounted in a shoe which will give the foot firm support in any adjusted position.

Another object is the provision of 'a shoe with an adjustable transverse foot lift by means of which displaced bones of the feet may be gradually returned to their normal positions without discomfort to the wearer of the shoe.

A further object is the provision of an adjustable transverse foot lift so mounted in a shoe as to give the sole added strength in place of weakening it as in most known devices.

A further object is the provision of a device of this character of very simple construction which may be placed in shoes without adding materially to their weight or cost.

In the present day with paved side-walks and 5: roads, the bones of the human foot are becoming displaced by constant walking on unyielding surfaces resulting in a good deal of discomfort and suffering. For some time past many attempts have been made to remedy this situation. Shoes are being constructed with arch supports but these are unsatisfactory for the reason that no two peoples feet are alike so that a support which would suit one person would not suit another. Adjustable arch supports have been produced but these were not entirely satisfactory for several reasons. First of all they gave support to the arch only which, while it alleviated the discomfort to a certain extent, were not entirely successful because the trouble was not caused by the fall of the arch alone but by the displacement of other bones of the foot as well. Secondly, in order to obtain the adjustment, they were so mounted in the shoe that after short use they became loose'and teetered from side to side re- 5 sulting in further discomfort. Thirdly, they weakened the sole of the shoe lying under the support.

Lastly, in certain adjustable arch supports, in order to'obtain adjustability, the forward end of 50 the support is free and is held down only by a light insole. It is quite obvious that these supports would continuously press upwardly against the ball of the foot causing a certain amount of discomfort, and would eventually break through -the insole thus damaging the shoe.

The present invention consists essentially of it) an adjustable transverse foot'lift firmly anchored at one end in the heel of the shoe with its forward end slidable in a plate mounted'in the sole of the shoe, means-operable outside the shoe for adjusting the lift by raising and lowering it 15':

along one side thereof and means for firmly holding the forward end in its adjusted position, as more fully described in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing, in which 6 Figure 1 is 'a vertical section taken through the transverse foot'lift mounted in a shoe,

Figure 2 is a plan View of the transverse lift mounted in position, with part of the upper of the shoe broken away, 2-

Figure 3 is a transverse section taken on the line 33' of Figure Land 2 Figure-4 is a fragmentary section taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Referring more particularly to the'drawing, A

is a-shoe having'mounted therein a transverse foot lift-B. The shoe A is of the usual construction having an outsole I0, heel I I, insole I2, sock lining I3 and upper I4.

A metal shank I5 having strengthening ribs I6,

is inserted between the sole I0 and the insole I2 either of which, if necessary, may be cut out to receive said shank. "The transverse foot lift B comprises a resilient plate I! shaped to fit snugly within the shoe over the insole. I2. I! is provided with a raised portion IB adapted. to lie beneath and fit into the arch of the foot. This raised, portion I8 extends rearwardly beyond the arch into the heel section of the plate, as at I9. relatively wide and terminates short of the main bending point. of the sole of the shoe which extends substantially along the line 20. This forward end of the plate I'Iis cut at 2| and 22 to form a tongue 23 which is' bent downwardly at 50" 24 and then horizontally at 25. This cutting of the plate forms a'pairof shoulders 26 and 21, one lying on each side of the tongue.

The transverse foot, lift is-fastened in the shoe by means of screws 28 or any-other suitable fas- 55 The plate The forward end of the plate I! is tening means such as rivets, nails, etc. The screws 28 are situated beyond the edge of the shank l so that they may pass through the soles of the shoe into the heel in order to fasten the lift firmly in place. These screws are placed adjacent to the outer edge of the plate I! thus leaving its inner edge free. The tongue 23 is adapted to pass through a slot 29 in the insole l2 and a slot 30 in the shank l5 adjacent its forward end while the shoulders 26 and 21 rest on said insole.

An internally and externally threaded sleeve 3|, situated just forward of the breast'ofthe heel II and near the inside edge of the shoe, extends through the soles of the shoe and terminates at its lower end flush with the outer surface of the outsole Ill. The sleeve 3| is formed at its upper end with an enlarged flange 32 having on its lower surface a number of burrs 33 adapted to be drawn into the insole l2 by a nut 34 threaded onto the sleeve 3| below the metal shank I5. The nut 34 holds the shank l5 and the sleeve 3| in their proper places and the burrs 33 prevent said sleeve from turning.

An adjusting screw 35 having an enlarged head 36 at its inner end is threaded in the sleeve 3|,

said enlarged head being adapted to bear against the underside of the plate I! adjacent toits inner edge. This screw 35 has a slot 31 in its 3.0% outer end by means of which it may be turned to raise and lower it in the sleeve 3|.

the plate is raised, said plate pivoting on its outer edge. When the screw is moveddownwardly the resiliency oi" the plate causes it to move downwardly also.

The plate H is mounted in the shoe byfirst inserting the tongue 23 into the slot 29 of the.

insole and the slot 30 of the shank l5. Then the heel portion of the plate is secured in place by. the screws 28. The shoe is completed by placing the sock lining over the transverse lift and the exposedparts of the inner sole. The sock lining is formed to cover the raised portion l8 of the plate.

As stated above, the bones of the human feet are gradually becoming displaced because of the constant walking on unyielding surfaces. Adjustable arch supports have been made for gradually returning the bones to their natural positions but the success of these has been rather doubtful for the simple reason that these 'supports return the arch to its normal place while certain other bones remain displaced.

'The transverse foot lift described above gradually returns all the bones of the footto their proper places. Before the foot is placed in the shoe the adjusting screw is turned until the plate I! is in its lowermost position. After the foot is laced into the shoe, the adjusting screw is turned until the plate bears against the foot with its raised portion |8 fitting into the'arch.

When the screw is turned upwardly the part of the plate lying beneath the arch and the inside of the heel gradually lifts the bones along the inside of the foot. I The plate being lifted adjacent to its inner edge, pivots along its outer edge. In this way the lift is greater along the inside of the foot where it is most needed than along the outside of the foot. At the same time, however, the bones" of the heel of the foot are being lifted slightly so that all the foot bones are worked back into their normal positions.

As' the adjusting screw is turned upwardly the plate rises, thus drawing the tongue 23 outwardly By moving the screw 35 upwardly, the inside edge of through the slots in the insole and the shank. The shoulders 26 and 21 by bearing on the insole, stabilize the transverse lift and prevent it from teetering which would in time, prove injurious to the foot. When the plate is lowered its resiliency moves the tongue forward in the grooves, the shoulders also being free to move forward.

A feature of this invention is the fact that the transverse lift may be adjusted in such an easy manner, it only being necessary toplace the shoe on the foot and turn the adjusting screw until the foot feels comfortable. Sometimes it will be necessary to raise the transverse lift a number of times. over a period of time until the bones are gradually worked into place without any discomfort to the wearer of the shoes.

From the above it will be seen that a transverse foot lift has been provided by means of which all the bones of the foot may be worked back into their normal positions and which will firmly support and retain the bones in said positions. K

Various modifications may be made in this invention without departing from the spirit thereof or the scope of the claims, and therefore the exact forms shown are to be taken as illustrative only and not-in a limiting sense, and it is desired that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are disclosed in the prior art or are set forth in the accompanying claims.

What we claim as our invention is:

1. A transverse foot lift comprising, in combination with a shoe, a shank mounted in said shoe having a slot adjacent its forward end, a resilient plate secured in the shoe and extending above said shank, a tongue formed on the forward end of the plate, said tongue being inserted in the slot and movable longitudinally of the shoe, means for stabilizing the plate and means for raising and lowering said plate along one side thereof.

25A transverse foot lift comprising in combination with a shoe, a shank mounted in said shoe having a slot adjacent its forward end, a resilient plate having a heel section secured in the shoe above the shank, said plate being formed along its inner edge with a raised portion extending into the heel section thereof, a tongue formed on the forward end of the plate movably inserted in the slot, means for stabilizing the plate and an adjusting screw movably mounted inthe sole of the shoe adjacent the breast of the heel, said screw being adapted to raise and lower the plate along its inner edge causing it to pivot along its outer edge.

3. A transverse'foot lift comprising, in combination with a shoe, a shank mounted in said shoe having a slot adjacent its forward end, a resilient plate having a heel section secured in the shoe along the outer edge of said heel section, said plate being formed along its inner edge with a raised portion extending into the heel section thereof, a tongue formed on the forward end of the plate movably inserted in the slot, a pair of shoulders, one on each side of the tongue, adapted to lie on the insole of the shoe to stabilize the plate and an adjusting screw threaded in a sleeve mounted in the sole of the shoe adjacent the breast of the heel, said screw being operable from outside the shoe to raise and lower the plate along its inner edge causing it to pivot along its outer edge.

4. A transverse foot lift comprising, in combination with a shoe, a shank mounted in said shoe having a slot adjacent its forward end, a

resilient plate having a heel section secured in the shoe along the outer edge of said heel section, said plate being formed along its inner edge with a raised portion extending into the heel section thereof, a tongue formed on the forward end of the plate movably inserted in the slot, a pair of shoulders, one on each side of the tongue, adapted to lie on the insole of the shoe to stabilize the plate, an internally and externally threaded sleeve extending through the soles and the shank adjacent the breast of the heel, said sleeve having an enlarged flange formed at its upper end with a plurality of burrs on its lower surface, a

nut threaded on the sleeve beneath the shank for holding the latter and the sleeve in position, said nut being adapted to draw the burrs into the insole to prevent the sleeve from rotating, and an adjusting screw threaded in the sleeving having an enlarged head bearing against the under side of the plate, said screw being operable from outside the shoe to raise and lower the plate along its inner edge causing it to pivot along its outer edge.

JOHN TRICK.

WALTER BIRMINGHAM TRICK. 

